BASELNEWS 2010Patek Philippe Nautilus Chronograph Ref. 5980/1A and 5980R
Four years ago, on the occasion of its 30th anniversary, the entire Nautilus collection was subtly refined and scaled up with new models. Special acclaim was garnered by the Nautilus Chronograph with a sporty complication to enhance its intrinsic casual elegance. Within the scope of its chronograph premières at Baselworld 2010, Patek Philippe is now launching two further Nautilus chronograph models that with their differentiated personalities will appeal to an even broader audience.
The common denominators
What both watches share is their inimitable style, the elaborate construction of their cases, and the modern self-winding CH 28-520 C chronograph movement that has already become a legend. The three-part, 44-mm-wide case with a screwed sapphire-crystal display back exhibits a typical Nautilus feature: the lateral ridges with the porthole mechanism for securing the bezel. Together with the hightech crown and pusher seals, it contributes to the remarkable water resistance of 12 bar (120 meters). This case, at once elegant and rugged, accommodates Patek Philippe’s self-winding CH 28-520 C chronograph movement with a column wheel, a vertical disk clutch, and an instantaneous aperture date at 3 o’clock that switches in a tenth of a second.
Thanks to the nearly wear-free disk clutch, the chronograph hand can double as a continuously running sweep seconds hand without hesitation. Accordingly, the flyback chronograph movement does not have a seconds subdial. The minute and hour counters are unusual as well: they are grouped in a monocounter with three concentric scales. It totalizes the minutes from 0 to 30 and from 30 to 60 on separate scales, while the innermost scale shows elapsed hours from 1 to 12.
The special facets of the Ref. 5980R-001 in 18K rose gold on a leather strap
At this year’s Baselworld, Patek Philippe is presenting the first Nautilus worn on a leather strap and featuring a precious-metal case crafted from 18K rose gold 5N. Because of a slightly higher proportion of copper, this alloy has a darker red hue than rose gold, so it has a more masculine look without compromising elegance. As a perfect match, the brown dial has a horizontal embossed texture and a bright/dark gradation from the center to the periphery, two typical manifestations of the Nautilus style. The prominent hour markers, nine rose gold appliques filled with a luminescent compound, constitute the formal complements to the baton-style luminescent hands in rose gold. The vibration-free counterbalanced chronograph/seconds hand is made of 18K rose gold as well. The shorter hourcounter hand of the monocounter is white; for better distinguishability, the longer and thinner minutecounter hand is red.
The new Nautilus Chronograph in rose gold is worn on a brown, large-scaled alligator strap; it is almost seamlessly integrated into the case with exclusive lug links and secured with a comfortable fold-over clasp in 18K rose gold.
The special facets of the Ref. 5980/1A-014 in steel
The new Ref. 5980/1A-014 distinguishes itself from the rose-gold model in terms of the case material, the dial and date display colors, and the bracelet. This casually elegant classic leverages its masculinity in steel. It owes its unique look to the unmistakable shape of the case with prominent lateral ridges and the rounded octagonal bezel as well as to decorative finishes such as the straightgraining on the bezel and the mirror-polished surface of the bezel and case flank chamfers. The perfectly integrated stainless steel bracelet with polished center links and satin-finished outer links produces the same choreographed light effects.
The new stainless steel Nautilus Chronograph also has a distinctive dial that differs from its counterparts in the rose gold and previous stainless steel models. Typical Nautilus traits include the embossing and the bright/dark gradation, but the color black is new, as are the date display with white numerals on a black background and the silvery gray monocounter with black numerals for the minute count from 0 to 30 and the hour count. The minutes from 30 to 60 are printed in red. The nine baton-style applied hour markers as well as the baton hour and minute hands are 18K white gold filled with a luminescent compound. The steel chronograph/seconds hand is sandblasted and rhodiumed. The sandblasted brass monocounter hands are color-coded: white for the hours and red for the minutes.
As its 2006 predecessor, which remains in regular production, the new stainless steel Nautilus is worn on a stainless steel bracelet. It affords a truly comfortable fit thanks to the carefully rounded links and tightly toleranced gaps. It is easy to open and secure with a practical fold-over clasp.
With its new models for the Nautilus Chronograph line, Patek Philippe has imbued the legendary Nautilus collection with fresh appeal. The new stainless steel model with a darker face expresses strength and determination while the new rose gold model showcases the chronograph function with masculine elegance. Indeed, the emotional spectrum of these Nautilus newcomers is inviting.